This week's episode is all about dystopian babes with questionable superpowers. Kohji and Andrew dig into two gloriously unhinged '90s/2000s guilty pleasures: the grimy, Heavy Metal-inspired cult classic Barb Wire, starring Pamela Anderson as a mercenary nightclub owner who really doesn't want to be called "babe," and the notoriously maligned Catwoman (2004), starring Halle Berry as a resurrected, catnip-obsessed corporate whistleblower turned superhero. Plus: Tank Girl gets a shelf-respect shoutout, a new "Critic or Commenter" segment puts Roger Ebert head-to-head with internet reviewers, and the guys debate whether sexualized action heroines can ever really have agency.
Show Notes
Intro & Supergirl chatter — is it this year's Mordecai?
Barb Wire (1996): a Casablanca remake nobody asked for, its Heavy Metal comic energy, practical '90s effects, and Udo Kier's unhinged Curly
Shelf Respect segment: Tank Girl and its comic-book roots
Catwoman (2004): origin story breakdown, the infamous "walk," basketball scene, toxic beauty industry themes, and the movie's tonal whiplash
Critic or Commenter: guessing game featuring a real Roger Ebert quote
Love It or Leave It: makeovers, Catwoman movies, dystopian B-movies, screwball tonal shifts, and sexualized leads in action films
Recommendations: The Death of Robin Hood and Adolescence
Next episode preview: The Fall and Clash of the Titans (2010)